What was the first rap album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 chart?

Licensed to Ill was the first rap album to reach number one on the Billboard 200.

The Beastie Boys’ debut studio album was released on November 15, 1986, by Def Jam and Columbia Records. Produced primarily by Rick Rubin, it fused aggressive rap delivery with hard-rock samples, shouted hooks, and a deliberately unruly sense of humor.

Its chart achievement was significant because rap albums had already built a strong audience but had not yet topped the main U.S. album chart. Licensed to Ill established that a hip-hop release could lead the entire Billboard 200, not merely a genre-specific ranking.

The album is often confused with later landmark releases such as Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, N.W.A’s Straight Outta Compton, or Dr. Dre’s The Chronic. Those records were hugely influential, but none was the first rap LP to top the Billboard 200. Licensed to Ill was also the Beastie Boys’ only album released through Def Jam.